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Artist
Paul Cezanne was born in Aix-en-Provence on January 19, 1839. He died there at the age of 67 on October 22, 1906. Cezanne is seen as the pioneer of classical modernism. His works passed through a number of styles – from romance to realism to impressionism. Cezanne developed a new imagery using the basic approach of impressionism. He searched for the stabilization of the more dissolving appearance of impressionistic works. He longed for a reform of the classical picture layout basing it on the achievements of impressionism. The term colour modulation can be traced back to Cezanne. Colour modulation is the presentation of spatial dimension or rather area illusion using harmonically altered coloured shades. Pablo Picasso named Paul Cezanne, artistically speaking, “father of all”. Cezanne was considered to be an eccentric man because of his self-doubts and uncompromising personality, who his peers often paid tribute to. His personal life was afflicted with problems, apparently he was shy around women and had fear of contact, so that his marriage with Hortense Fiquet was of more formal nature to legitimize their 14 year old son. Their relationship was had already been shattered.
Artwork
Le Moulin sur la Couleuvre a Pontoise, “The mill by the Couleuvre in Pontoise” was created in 1881. It measures 91.5 x 73.5 cm (width x height). The piece was bought by the Berliner Nationalgalerie in 1897.
Brief description
The purchase of the painting in 1897 by the director of the Berliner Nationalgalerie Hugo von Tschudi, was only a small revolution. Not only did Tschudi rebel against Wilhelm II, who hated the French, who in return preferenced more historical paintings, but the Berliner Museum already owned an artwork from Cezanne, even before the government’s collection of his work. Max Liebermann himself drew the director of the museum’s attention to Pail Cezanne. They both travelled together to Paris in 1896 to get a better look at French impressionism. Paul Cezanne introduces us with short, narrow and strong strokes of the brush – vertical, diagonal, curved or almost circled – to a landscape with a mill. On the left side, one can see tall trees. In the left half we see the mill with a little pond, in front of it we see a sandy path and a garden with several growing flowerbeds. If you look a bit further right, then your gaze will wander off into the slightly undulating landscape, where scattered houses are in between colourful fields. The picture projects easiness, light and warmth from the different colour selection ranging between different shades of green, blue, brown and beige. Despite the apparent geometrical structure in many of the painted surfaces, Cezanne brings the picture to life.
Genre & Material
Painting of Impressionism. Painted in oil on a canvas.
Where can I find this in Berlin?
In the Alten Nationalgalerie on the Museuminsel, Bodestraße 1-3, 10178 Berlin-Mitte. To find out how to get there, please click the link below the description
The purchase of the painting in 1897 by the director of the Berliner Nationalgalerie Hugo von Tschudi, was only a small revolution. Not only did Tschudi rebel against Wilhelm II, who hated the French, who in return preferenced more historical paintings, but the Berliner Museum already owned an artwork from Cezanne, even before the government’s collection of his work. Max Liebermann himself drew the director of the museum’s attention to Pail Cezanne. They both travelled together to Paris in 1896 to get a better look at French impressionism.
Paul Cezanne introduces us with short, narrow and strong strokes of the brush – vertical, diagonal, curved or almost circled – to a landscape with a mill. On the left side, one can see tall trees. In the left half we see the mill with a little pond, in front of it we see a sandy path and a garden with several growing flowerbeds. If you look a bit further right, then your gaze will wander off into the slightly undulating landscape, where scattered houses are in between colourful fields. The picture projects easiness, light and warmth from the different colour selection ranging between different shades of green, blue, brown and beige. Despite the apparent geometrical structure in many of the painted surfaces, Cezanne brings the picture to life.
